Julie Jay: To Elf or Not to Elf, that is the question

As Christmas approaches, many parents are dreading the return of a tiny trespasser and his mischievous antics

It's that time of year when parents are under siege. Not from children altering present demands at the 11th hour or cold calls from wildlife charities asking you to adopt just one more donkey in Nepal, but rather, the culprit in question comes in a much more unassuming form — the Elf on The Shelf.

Yes, the elf is back and is more annoying than that coworker who bends the ear off you at the Christmas party, impressing upon you how her latest business venture is most definitely not a pyramid scheme.